New Orleans , Louisiana -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- My dad died when I was 2 , so my mother raised us -LSB- Smith and his sister -RSB- and exposed us to different things . We took music lessons , art appreciation lessons , and we even went to finishing school . Mrs. Howard 's School of Charm .

My sister and I hated it at the time . We just wanted to be normal kids and eat our Frosted Flakes on Saturday mornings in front of the television , watching our Looney Tunes .

My mom was a very good cook . In fact , she was a private cook for an attorney for years . She exposed my sister and I to the same types of food that she was cooking at work . We were basically the only kids on our block that had eaten lobster with drawn butter .

On holidays , we would go to work with her . We 'd always sit in the kitchen . I was just amazed with all the cooking ingredients and implements .

I was one of those guys that was never picked to be on someone 's baseball team or basketball team , so I started cooking . My mother had always had a lot of cookbooks . I just started playing around . I started baking . We always had butter ; we always had flour and sugar and vanilla and eggs . I might have looked at other recipes and did n't think we had the ingredients , and I certainly did n't have money to go buy them .

The first thing I baked was a cake . I was 9 or 10 . It was a plain yellow cake . I can remember the icing being a little runny , but it was good .

We went to Catholic school . We went to Mass once a week , while in school , as well as on Sundays . God has always been with me .

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I 've certainly called on God when I 'm in the kitchen , when things are going wrong , when I 'm irritated or very upset about something . I 've called on God walking up here to unlock the doors and come into work -- to help me at not being quick-tempered or losing my cool . Help me be the person I need to be .

It -LSB- becoming a priest -RSB- is something that I thought about as a child . It was something I was going to do out of high school , and I put it off . I 'm glad now that I did n't go through with it , because I was very immature . I was n't ready . But now I feel very strongly , and I know in my heart that I 'm ready to do it .

I did n't wake up one morning and just sit up in bed and stretch and say , `` Well , I think I 'll try the priesthood . '' There 's a lot of prayer involved . This prayer process , that 's neverending . I have a spiritual director I work with , and I started out with that at first . But this process of thinking about it , it 's been all my life .

I developed a very close relationship with the archbishop -LSB- Archbishop Gregory Aymond of the Archdiocese of New Orleans -RSB- . He was here , at the restaurant , one night about two or three months ago , and I said , `` There 's something on my mind , and I 'd love to talk to you about it . ''

I met with him , and I was n't home 10 minutes and the vocation director called . I set up another appointment to meet with him , and the rest is history .

There are parts of it -LSB- the restaurant kitchen -RSB- that I 'll miss and parts of it that I will not miss . I will miss the people . I will miss the guests . The cooking aspects , I definitely will miss . I will not miss the rushiness of it , the overwhelming feeling you get when you 're working the line , and it looks like everyone is ordering at the same time .

I 'm hoping I can still do things -LSB- in a kitchen -RSB- , but I 'm hoping I can do it on a small scale , for fun . I would love to do something for the needy or poor , during the holidays when people really feel their lowest . Not just your typical out-of-the-can , warmed-up meal ; I 'd like to do it -LSB- serve them -RSB- just like you 'd get here . Top quality .

I 'll move into the seminary . I am looking forward to embracing the simple life . That gives me great pleasure to think about . I want to give all of myself , and I do n't think you can do that when you have a lot of baggage .

I have this massive cookbook collection -- close to 3,000 books -- that I 'm not just going to leave or just throw away . I have thought about , if I passed away , where would it go . I want to donate it to a school .

With baking , you have to follow the rules . I try to be a very good rule player . Play by the rules and work by the rules . The prayer life , the rules that a priest is supposed to live by , that really excites me . And being able to help people and minister to people .

Yesterday at Mass , one of the readings was about the widow who gave all of what she had . I want to emulate her , and I think this is the best way that I can see for me .

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In his own words , an executive chef shares his spiritual journey toward the priesthood

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Drawn to cooking as a child , he spent years at a top-rated New Orleans restaurant

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God and faith have always been with him , he says , as have thoughts of being a priest

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At 50 , he 's hung up his apron and entered the seminary , a logical move , he explains